The TBA host inaugural event to celebrate the achievements of National Hunt breeders
As the National Hunt world gathered in Doncaster for the DBS Spring Sales earlier this week, the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (TBA) celebrated a remarkable year for National Hunt breeders at the inaugural 2015 TBA NH Breeders Celebration Dinner on Tuesday 19th May. The evening, generously sponsored by DBS, was the first of its kind to honour breeders of the best British NH-bred horses of the 2014/15 season.
Guests enjoyed an evening applauding award winners from nine categories. Each category honouring one winning breeder, selected from three nominees, from a secret ballot run by the TBA NH Committee. It was concluded that the winner of each award should go to the breeder of the horse whose results during the season had, in the opinion of the TBA NH Committee, most enhanced the prestige of British NH Breeding.
Master of Ceremonies, Nick Luck, lead the 180 guests through each award, listing those shortlisted before revealing the winners, whom remained secret until each envelope was opened by the individual award sponsors. The evening began on a note of true celebration, after a year of prestigious and remarkable success it was only right that the ceremony commenced with the award that was won by the late Lord Oaksey. After being the first novice to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup for 41 years and only the third British NH-Bred winner in 20, Coneygree’s results this season flew the flag for British breeding and saw Lady Oaksey called to the stage to collect the Mickley Trophy for the leading Novice Chaser.
A very surprised Heather Calzini was ‘incredibly honoured to be recognised, let alone win’ the Highflyer Trophy for the leading Hurdler. As the breeder of, Lieutenant Colonel, one of only two British NH-bred winners of an Irish Grade 1 race during the season, a feat achieved twice, this season was yet another memorable one for Co Durham breeder. A rare British NH-bred winner of an Irish Grade 1 hurdle and the only British NH-bred hurdler to be placed at the Cheltenham Festival, Sizing John, saw his breeders Bryan and Sandra Mayoh awarded with the Shade Oak Trophy for the leading Novice Hurdler ahead of two Kayf Tara contenders.
The Yorton Trophy for the Leading NH Flat Horse saw Bill and Diana Bromley invited on to the stage to accept their award for Yanworth’s impressive achievements. A DBS Spring Store Sales graduate who won two bumpers before finishing second in the Listed Bumper at Ascot, Yanworth has a season to be proud of and an exciting future to look forward to. On receiving his award, the Overbury Trophy for leading Chase Mare, Richard Bridges shared the story of how Highland Retreat was bred, after his daughter Lucy, recovering from a coma, insisted St Kilda visit Exit to Nowhere. The winner of two of her four chases and winner of Black-Type races over both hurdles and fences, Highland Retreat has gifted the Bridges family many celebratory moments since.
Robert and Shirley Carter visited the stage twice during the evening to claim both the Little Lodge Trophy for the leading Hurdles Mare and the Beech Tree Trophy for the leading Novice Hurdles Mare titles. Bitofapuzzle (Puzzle, to her friends) has had an impressive season winning three races including the Grade 1 Mares Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse and Grade 2 Warfield Mares Hurdle. Peter and Emma Hockenhull were delighted to receive the penultimate award, the Mill House Trophy for the leading NH Flat Mare, for Hollies Pearl. As a winner of three bumpers, including the Listed Mares Bumper at Aintree, she beat her track rivals Chocca Wocca and Lifeboat Mona who were also shortlisted.
The evening concluded on a similar note to which it began with arguably the evening’s most prestigious award seeing Lady Oaksey returning to the stage to receive the Pitchall Trophy for the Leading Chaser title. Summarising her team’s season and the award evening quite perfectly, Lady Oaksey had one thing to say: ‘If we can do it with just one mare, so can anybody else. Keep breeding.’
As an inaugural event there was high demand for a repeat performance next year and for the celebrations to be an annual event. With tickets sold out and a waiting list running, the TBA and DBS were delighted with the support the evening received. Commenting on the occasion, Chairman of the TBA NH Committee said: ‘This Celebration Dinner is the result of a new TBA NH Committee initiative, so we were thrilled to see it become such a success. We are extremely grateful for the support of DBS, both financially and in helping organise the event, as well as the individual sponsors who sponsored each award. It’s not often we are able to gather the breeders together, acknowledge their successes and celebrate the best of British NH breeding, we are so pleased that everyone had such an enjoyable time.’